Battle could be brewing over W. Chester parking lot

Opening Day of the 2013 West Chester Growers Market took place on Saturday, May 4, 2013 in the parking lot at Chestnut and Church Streets in the borough. Vendors were selling artisan pastas, artisan cheeses, herbs, fruits, vegetables, breads, wines and more. Staff photo by Tom Kelly IV

WEST CHESTER – When borough residents visit the parking lot at West Chestnut and North Church streets on Saturdays, they enjoy one kind of green – the kind that comes in the form of fresh vegetables from area farmers.

When government officials consider the same lot, they see another kind of green – the kind that represents the money Lot 10 could fetch the borough from developers in the current challenging economic times.

With that interest becoming more than passing, some residents are sounding the alarm that the borough could lose the farmers market some have grown to love, not to mention the parking spaces it provides.

After sending out a request for proposal, the borough received five offers for the property, ranging from $450,000 to $982,000, and one offer of a property trade. The offers range from keeping the property a public parking lot to developing it for residential and office uses. The 28,000-square-foot parcel is in zoned Town Center, Block Class B.

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The proposals were discussed briefly at Tuesday’s Finance Committee meeting.

John Manion, committee chairman and councilman, said the property was one that came up two years ago as the borough looked at properties that could be potential money makers to offset some growing expenses.

The committee made no move on the proposals at the meeting, but unanimously recommended to seek an independent appraisal of the lot.

When word of the request for proposal went out, residents became concerned over a possible loss of the West Chester Grower’s Market.

Mayor Carolyn Comitta and council members emphasized they have no intention of losing the market, though if the lot is sold, relocation may be in order.

“I don’t think anyone in town or the surrounding areas is against the grower’s market,” Manion said.

Council President Holly Brown, however, said the growers market has no interest in being relocated indoors or under a garage since it prides itself as an open air venue

“We love the growers market and we are trying to do anything we can to make sure it stays in town,” Brown said.

A petition to keep the market alive at its current location was recently started on the website Change.org. As of Wednesday afternoon, the petition had garnered 162 signatures.

The petition addresses Comitta and borough council members directly, asking them not to consider the sale of Lot 10.

The petition states, “The possible development no matter how high of a dollar figure, can’t replace the community outreach that this market has created and sustained for 19 years.

“When making the decision, think of how many businesses have not been able to sustain and have had to cave to the economy and close in West Chester over the past 19 years, and then think what it takes to keep something going for 19 years in a town, the West Chester Growers Market has pulled it off,” states the petition.

“What we will do as council is weigh all of these components and give them their due diligence and try and come up with the most Solomon like answer we are humbly able to,” Manion said.

The five proposals for the lot are as follows:

• Patrick and Kathryn Comerford proposed purchasing the lot and leasing it back to the borough for a 10-year period. The property would be purchased at $800,000 and leased back to the borough for $6,000 a month, plus 20 percent of the gross meter and ticket revenue above $72,000 a year.

• McFadden Group Inc. proposed purchasing the property for $982,000. The lot would then be used as additional parking for the Hotel Warner and the possible addition of hotel rooms. Some onsite parking would be maintained with 15 spaces leased to the borough.

• Jack Loew and Associates Inc. proposed a multi-story office or residential building raised over two levels of parking. The proposal indicates the office portion would contain two additional levels. Additional space would be used for retail purposes. The proposed purchase price is $750,000. One floor of parking would be made available for public use after normal business hours.

• The fourth proposal was made by Tripoint Properties, which seeks to use the space as residential and retail mixed use building complete with parking both private and public. The five story building proposal would include 28 condominiums and 107 parking spaces, 40 of which would be public. Tripoint proposed a purchase price of $450,000, but said it would raise the amount if property assessments by the borough proved to show a higher worth.

• Last, StanAb LP proposed a mixed use retail office building with two levels of parking, of which 72 spaces would be available to the public after business hours. Instead of a cash deal, StanAb proposed a trade of lot 2 at 535 North Church Street, a portion of the Barclay Property with an assessed value of $1.2 million.